In various industries it is often necessary to transfer chemical substances from one container to another, or to inject them into a cavity. For example, hand-cleaning fluids have to be poured from a storage container into a soap dispenser, lubricating oil from a storage can into a grease-gun or polishing paste from a storage drum into the container of a polishing machine. An example of injecting chemical substances into cavities is the use of insulation or filler materials in construction to fill gaps or holes. Another example is repairing damaged effluent pipes by injecting filler materials into cracks or couplings in the pipe wall.
Present-day technology uses plastic, metal or glass funnels for transferring chemical substances from one container into another. However, these funnels are suitable primarily for fluid or powdered substances, rather than for pasty materials. There is also the risk of spillage with this method as the container being filled may overrun or the funnel may tilt. Spatulas can be used for transferring pasty substances, but this is a very laborious and time-consuming exercise. It also has the disadvantage that air may become trapped in the paste; this is a particular problem in the case of filler or insulating materials since entrapped air makes it impossible to achieve a perfect seal.
Funnels and spatulas have to be cleaned after use and, depending on the substance which has been transferred, conventional cleaning agents may be unsuitable. Solvents which may pollute the environment then have to be used.
Disposal problems arise when a chemical substance in a refill container has to be transferred to another container before it can be used. This is the case with lubricating oils, for example. These have to be transferred from a storage drum or bucket into a grease-gun. Another example is filler materials for pipe repairs; these have to be transferred from a storage container into the repair equipment. To avoid the empty refill containers (which previously held toxic substances) being classified as special waste, the residues of toxic substances have to be removed prior to disposal. This is a laborious process which often involves the use of solvents which are potentially damaging to the environment. If the chemical substance which has to be removed is a two-component material which hardens quickly, the container has to be cleaned immediately after emptying before the residues set.
It should also be mentioned that the person who transfers a substance or cleans the refill container comes into contact with the substance and the cleaning solvents, which may present a health risk. Chemical substances may cause burns, allergies, skin cancer or other illnesses. Cleaning solvents may damage the lungs and other respiratory organs.
A refill container was therefore sought which would allow substances to be transferred without using funnels or spatulas and which could be cleaned without difficulty.
Refill containers currently exist in the form of cylindrical cartridges made of aluminium or cardboard. The substances are expressed from such cartridges through a tube-like apparatus at one of the ends. This tube-like apparatus can be introduced without any problem into small openings in other containers. Use of a funnel is therefore unnecessary. However, these cartridges have relatively rigid walls and can be compressed only to a limited extent; substance residues therefore have to be washed out. The object of the invention was therefore to develop a container, particularly for chemical substances, which would allow these substances to be decanted without using funnels, spatulas or other apparatus.